Write The Best Pitch Letter After Reading These Examples

Pitch letters are a facet of a company’s marketing and press relations activities. Somewhat similar to press releases, pitch letters target specific people instead of the general public. The best pitch letter examples in various niches have been commended online for grabbing a reporter’s attention right off the bat. 

But here’s the catch:

Crafting pitch letters is tricky because they should be tailor-made for a particular editor, journalist, or reporter. And mind you, these prominent types of people can easily dump your pitch letters in a pile of mediocrity. 

So how do you get them to accept your pitch? 

Here’s a rundown of the benefits of writing an influential pitch letter, tips to get a positive response, and some pitch letter examples that will help you get started. 

Benefits of Well-Polished Pitch Letters

Pitch letters could carry a different purpose every time. However, the common denominator of writing a sales or marketing pitch is to get media mileage for your brand.

Some common goals of creating a pitch letter are:

• Get media coverage for events, product launches, or service features
• Cover an expert’s story in a specific industry
• Highlight your brand’s milestone 
• Garner interviews
• Written before a press release

Although press releases are a powerhouse strategy to market your brand, pitch letters can equally do the same — and with an even higher success rate. 

Why?

That’s because pitch letters are aimed at a particular person. Firstly, the benefit of writing to a selective group is having the same target audience. So if you ace your sales pitch, expect to market your product or service to the right prospects. 

Secondly, unlike press releases, pitch letters or emails will likely get a follow-up response from the recipient — provided that you included all the right ingredients. Press releases are mass-targeted to the public. In contrast, sending out an email or letter pitch to a sole recipient makes it easy for the recipient to respond. 

Lastly, crafting letter pitches can level the playing field against the bigwigs and juggernauts in the same niche. It all depends on how good your writers are. 

It might be hard for startups to gain media coverage. But with expert writers, you can quickly oust the competition — fair and square. 

Before rolling your sleeves and getting to work, here are some tips and pitch letter examples you must read. 

Best Pitch Letter Examples and Tips to Perfect Them 

Resolve a Pain Point

Pitching your brand’s motive could be as easy as telling the recipient how amazing your products or services are. However, I’d steer clear from this if I were you.

Call it selfish, but people love talking about themselves. That said, when writing your pitch letters, make it all about the recipient, their channel, and audience. As yourself these questions:

• Why would this make a fantastic story?
• What’s in it for them?
• How can my pitch help them?

Here’s an email pitch from an author with the same audience as Greatgardeners.com. In the email, he brilliantly enumerated how his book can help those that are on the stage of nurturing their green thumb. 

Keep it Short and Sweet

First and foremost, remember that you’re writing to busy reporters or editors in a fast-paced industry. Try to be sensitive about their busy schedules by keeping your letter pitches short and sweet. 

Avoid fluff and explain your pitch succinctly. Although apple-polishing might work to your advantage, too much of it could lead to a decline, or worse — being ghosted. 

Here’s an example that starts by expressing his admiration for the recipient’s platform. Then the sender ends the letter by asking if any of them would want to chat about it. Simple yet straightforward — like how any pitch should be. 

Give Your Pitch an Edge

TV, news, and radio networks would prefer covering engaging and original stories that gain more followers. So if you don’t have an exciting story or proposal, consider writing the pitch letter at a later time when your brand reaches a milestone. 

Do you have an innovative product? Have your sales reached a jaw-dropping figure? Does your CEO have a rags-to-riches story worthy of an interview? Did you recently have a significant merger with a famous company? 

Make sure you propose a compelling idea involving a recent business development. Or you may even get with the times and connect your pitch to current news and events. 

This example is catchy, announcing the number of Apple users in 2014. Then the sales pitch shifts to how two companies collaborated to create a state-of-the-art product that highlights the art and design niche. 

Make Your First Sentences Riveting

The only way to make editors and journalists read your entire pitch letter is if you hook them in the first few lines. 

Paint a picture of how the story would unfold if they accept your proposal letter. Better yet, pique their interest by asking thought-provoking questions.

The first few sentences should elicit an “aha moment” from the recipient. Take this pitch letter example from Pinterest into account. Learn how the first two questions trigger a comprehension that could possibly materialize into media coverage. 

Do a Background Check on the Recipient

There’s a fine line between a press release and pitch letter, and it’s — personalization. Knowing what makes your recipient tick could mean success for your pitch. Consequently, do a background check on their previous work and advocacies, if any. 

Flattery is a good tactic. That said, don’t be shy when lauding them on a particular piece they’ve done in the past. Here’s a video editor’s pitch to Hubspot, which earned brownie points from the person in charge.

Keep it Flawless 

There’s nothing more off-putting than misspelling the recipient’s name or barraging the recipient with annoying writing pet peeves. 

Pitch letters should avoid these, by hook or by crook:

• All caps
• Misspellings or typographical errors
• Bold words and phrases
• Underlined words and phrases
• Exclamation points
• Syntax errors
• Grammar errors

Pro Tip:

You could easily miss your chance of a response due to one minor mishap: Incomplete details! 

Include URLs to your website or any sources mentioned, links to product specifications, and images if it’s a sales pitch. You may also include sample articles if you’re asking for a mention from a particular platform. 

Better yet, offer a beta preview if you’re launching a new app or software. Do whatever it takes to make it easy for recipients to weigh if your pitch is worthy or not.